Gerald w



G. W. HART.

SNAP SWITCH.

Patented Oct. 13, 1896. l

(No Model.)

llnrrnn Sr/rrns GERALD IV. HART, OF HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE HART & IIEGEMAN MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

SNAP-SWITCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part Of Letters Patent NO. 569,332, dated October 13, 1896.

Appli n fi July 9, 1896- Serial No. 598,517. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GERALD TV. HART, a citizen of the United States, residing at Hartford, in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Snap-Switches, of which the following is a specification.

The invent-ion relates to electric snapswitches, and the object is to provide a simple, cheap, and durable switch of this class, either single or double pole, that may be used in connection with are or incandescent light circuits, power-circuits, or heater-circuits, in which the circuit opening and closing con tacts can be moved in either direction a complete circle, a part of a circle, or back and forth between any points for forming the different paths for current through the switch or opening the switch.

To this end the invention resides in a switch having a base bearing the desired number of stationary contacts that are adapted to be connected with the main and circuit wires, one or more contacts or poles movable in either direction for connecting and disconnecting the various stationarycontacts, latch and lock parts, an impulse and latch controlling; spring, and means for making tense the spring and releasing the latch from the locking parts, as more particularly hereinafter described, and pointed out in the claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a plan of one form-of the switch with the handle removed. Fig. 2 is a diametrical section of the same on plane denoted by the broken line X X. Fig. 3 is a similar section on a plane at right angles thereto. Fig. I shows detail views of the latch and lock parts that are about the spindle, and Fig. 5 is a detail view of a portion of a form of the switch with a modified arrangement of latch.

In the views, 1 indicates the base of the switch. The base may be made in any convenient outline of any suitable insulating material, but it is preferably formed of a circular block of porcelain. This base bears any desired number of conducting-pieces that preferably have spring-fingers 2 arranged to make a grasping contact with the movable pole or poles, and posts 3 for the attachment of the wires of the circuits in which the switch is to be connected.

Attached to the base is a plate 4:, that is provided with locking notches or indentations 5, and loosely held in a perforation through this plate and a hub that is usually connected therewith is a spindle 6. In the drawings a single-pole switch is illustrated, and in this form. of switch one of the stationary contacts is connected by a plate 7 with this lockingplate 4, so that current may pass from the post of the contact through the plate 7 to the plate 4, and from thence to the pole of the switch.

Connected so as to rotate with the spindle is a cam-plate 8. This plate is arranged so that when rotated in one direction a portion will engage the latch-plate 9 and disengage it from the lock that for a time holds it against rotation. The plate 8 may be cut as an eccentric or a simple cam, as shown in Figs. 1 to 4. It may be a pin or stud so located as to make engagement with the latch, or, as shown in Fig. 5, the plate may have cams formed on the edge of one face.

The latch 9 is loosely supported by the spindle adjacent to the plate 8. The latch shown in Figs. 1 to at has an oblong opening, which allows a lengthwise reciprocation as well as a rotation for the latch on the spindle. In this form of latch there may be a portion 10 that projects downward into the path of the edge of the cam-plate 8, and a stud or pin 11 is located on the latch, so thatit will rest in the various notches of the locking-plate 4 when the latch is drawn to one limit of its longitudinal movement, but will be free from any of the locking-notches when the latch is forced to the other limit of its longitudinal movement by the cam. Of course the plate may have projections and the latch have a notch to receive the projections for locking the latch in its several positions, if desired. A pair of upward-projecting arms 12 are 0011- nected with the latch in position to be engaged by the impulse-spring 13 or a part that is held by the impulse spring.

In the single-pole switch illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3 the latch is extended in one direction to provide a pole or conducting-contact that connects with the various stationary contacts secured to the base as the latch is rotated, the current in this form passing from one of the binding-posts 3 to the pole through the plate '7, the locking-plate, and latch. The latch may, however, be connected with a separate pole-piece 18, as shown in Fig. 5, and the latch-plate or pole-piece may, if desired, be extended in two or more directions to provide other poles, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, or it may bear an insulating-block with conducting-contacts that make the proper conducting connections.

Supported by the spindle and connected so as to rotate therewith is the spring-winding plate 14. This plate is shown as having arms 15, that are also engaged by the ends of the spring 13 or a part that is held by the spring. The spring is coiled about the spindle, and its ends are extended so as to engage on opposite sides the edgesof the arms 12 and 15, the arms 12 being connected with the latch 9, that is free to rotate on the spindle, and the arms 15 being connected with a part that is secured so as to rotate with the spindle. In the form shown in Figs. 1 to 4 the arms 15 are connected with the plate 14, that is secured to thespindle; but in the form shown in Fig. 5 the winding-arms 16 are connected directly with the cam-plate 8, that is secured to the spindle so as to rotate therewith.

The spindle is provided with meanswhereby it may be rotated, as with the handle 17; but of course a lever may be used instead of the rotary handle shown, or push-buttons maybe arranged to give movement to the spindle.

Vhen the windingspindle is rotated in either direction, one of the arms 15 that pith ject from the plate connected with the s dle engages with one end of the spring, and, carrying it around, winds up the spring and makes it tense, for the other end of the spring is held against movement by the arm 12 that projects upward from the latch on the side opposite to the arm 15 that is winding up the spring, which arm cannot at first move, as the latch is temporarily held by the engage ment of its locking stud with one of the notches of the locking-plate. However, as the spring is being wound up the cam-plate that is connected with the spindle is also bein g rotated, and when the spring has reached the predetermined degree of tension the cam or eccentric that engages a part of the latch has so moved as to force the latch sufficiently to cause the locking-stud to disengage from the notch of the locking-plate by which it is held, and then the latch is free to be rotated by the impulse of the end of the now tense spring that bears against the arm 1-2v that is opposite the winding arm 15. When the spindle is rotated in one direction, one windin g-arm 15 on one side engages one end of the spring, and when the spindle is rotated in the opposite direction the other of the windingarms 15 engages the opposite end of the spring for making it tense, and of course in .each case the opposite arm 12 that projects from the latch holds the opposite end of the spring while it is being made tense until the cam-plate has moved su fliciently to cause the latch to be disengaged from the lock.

The cam-plate is arranged so that in either case the cam is caused to engage the latch and move it from the hold of the lock. As stated, the plate shown in Figs. 1 to lhas the cam-surfaces formed on its periphery and moves the latch longitudinally to cause its locking-stud to disengage from the lockingnotch in which it rests, whereas in the form shown in Fig. 5 the cam-surfaces are formed on the face of the plate, and these move the latch up to cause the stud to disengage from the locking-notch. In the first form the ends of the spring bearing against the arms 12 draw the latchback longitudinally and hold it with the locking-stud engaging the lockingnotch, and this action increases, of course, as the spring is made tense by therotation of the spindle and the latch is forced forward by the cam. In the second form the spring bears downward against the latch and tends to hold it with the stud, which in this case is formed on the end engaging the locking-notch, and this action continues when the spring is being made tense for throwing the latch and connected pole.

This construction produces a simple, cheap, durable, and efficient switch which can be used for any ordinary circuits, eitherlight, heat, or power; Any necessary number of contacts may be secured to the base for the attachment of the desired circuit-wires and the switch may be made either single or dou ble pole without altering the arrangement or location of the parts or changing the mode of operation.

The pole or poles can be thrown in either direction and made to rotate completely around the spindle from contact to contact, or only a part of the way around the spindle, or simply back and forth between two. points for throwing in or out the desired circuits. The single spring shown is utilized to give impulse for throwing the latch and connected pole or poles and for retaining the latch in a locked position until the spring is made sufficiently tense for properly throwing the pole or poles and the unlocking parts act.

I claim as my invention- 1. In asnap-switch, in combination, a base, contacts secured to the base, a notched plate on the base, a spindle rotarily supported by the base, a latch movable longitudinally and rotarily independently of the spindle which supports it said latch having a part adapted to engage the notchesin the plate, aconducting-pole carried by the latch, a part connected with the spindle and adapted to engage and move the latch, and a single latch throwing and locking spring that is engaged by a part connected with the spindle and made tense when the spindle is rotated and that engages a part connected with the latch and tends to hold the latch againstlongitudinal movement when the spring is being made tense, whichever direction the spindle is rotated, substantially as specified.

2. In a snap-switch, in combination, abase, contacts secured to the base, a lock on the base, aspindle rotarily supported by the base, alatch movable longitudinally independently of the spindle and having a part adapted to engage the look, a conducting-pole carried by the latch, a part connected with the spindle and adapted to engage the latch and move it longitudinally, and a single latch throwing and locking spring supported by the spindle and having outwardly-extending ends, one of which ends engages on one side of the spindle a part connected with the latch and a part connected with the spindle and the other ofwhich ends engages on the other side of the spindle a part connected with the latch and a part connected with the spindle, so that as the spindle is rotated in either direction tension is given the spring by moving one end, the other end being held in a manner that tends to hold the latch against longitudinal movement, substantially as specified.

3. In asnap-switch, in combination, a base, contacts secured to the base, a notched plate attached to the base, a spindle rotarily supported by a part of the plate, a latch movable about the spindle and having a part adapted to engage the notches in the plate, a conductin g-pole carried by the latch, a part connected with the spindle and adapted to engage and move the latch, and a single latch throwing and locking spring supported by the spindle and having an end that is engaged by a part connected with the spindle so that when the spindle is rotated the spring is made tense, and an end that engages a part connected with the latch so that when the spring is made tense for throwing the catch it also tends to keep the latch engaged with the lock, substantially as specified.

4. In a snap-switch, in combination, a base, contacts secured to the base, a lock on the base, a spindle rotarily supported by the base, a latch movable about the spindle and having a part adapted to engage the lock, said latch being extended to form a movable pole of the switch, a part connected with the spindle and adapted to engage and move the latch, and a single latch throwing and locking spring sup ported bythe spindle and having its ends extending outwardly in opposite directions, one of which ends is engaged by a part connected with the latch on one side when the spindle is rotated in one direction and the other of which ends is engaged by another part connected with the latch on the opposite side when the spindle is rotated in the opposite direction, substantially as specified.

5. In a snap-switch, in combination, a base, contacts secured to the base, a lock on the base, a spindle supported by the base, a latch movable about the spindle and having a part adapted to engage the look, a conductingpole carried by the latch, a part connected with the spindle and adapted to engage and move the latch, a pair of arms projecting from the latch, a pair of arms projecting from a part connected with the spindle, and a spring supported by the spindle and en gaging the arms, substantially as specified.

6. In a snap-switch, in combination, a base, contacts secured to the base, a notched plate attached to the base, a spindle supported by a hub of the notched plate, a latch with a longitudinal and rotary movement independent of the spindle and having apart adapted to engage the notches of the plate, a cam secured to the spindle and adapted to engage a part of the latch and move it in one direction, a pair of arms projecting from the latch, a pair of arms projecting from a plate secured to the spindle, and a spring supported by the spindle with its ends normally engaging the arms of the latch so as to hold the latch against the cam, said spring being arranged to be engaged by the arms projecting from the plate secured to the spindle, substantially as specified.

GERALD IV. HART.

\Vitnesses:

H. R. WILLIAMS, E. J. HYDE. 

